Sociology 211
Social Problems
Spring 2003
Dr. Scott SchafferMidterm Examination Prep Sheet – Tues Mar 4/2003, 1pm to 215pm
Details: This exam will be given in two parts. The first part asks you to write a number of take-home essays, which will be due at the start of the second part, the in-class exam. You must submit the take-home essays on arriving in class for the midterm; otherwise, you will receive a zero (0) for the entire exam.
For the in-class portion of the exam, you will need the following items: two blue books; a couple of blue or black-ink pens; and one 8 1/2” by 11” sheet of notes (double-sided if you wish). No credit will be given for information that appears in the notes but not in the blue books. No other materials will be permitted during the exam.
Exam Breakdown: There are three parts to this exam.
I. Take-home essays. (40% of exam grade) On the reverse side of this sheet are listed seven essays. You will choose two (2) of them and write at least three (3) typed, double-spaced pages in response to each of them. (Further details appear below.) You are required to use at least three articles from the Social Problems and Social Solutions book in the development of each essay; these articles must be differ across the essays, so in total, you’ll use six (6) articles in developing the essays. Be sure to cite each reference to an article using this format: (Author, Page #).
Your essays should have the number of the question at the start of your response, and should be stapled together with a cover page on which your name appears. Your name should appear nowhere else in the essays. Make sure that your essays are spell- and grammar-checked, and that you have proofread your work. See the “How to Write a Schaffer Paper” handout (on the course web site) for more guidelines as to how your work will be evaluated.
II. Concept identification questions. (30% of exam grade) The in-class portion of this exam will ask you to identify a number of concepts you’ll have seen up to the point of the exam, following what you’ve done on the discussion questions so far.
III. Sociological problem analysis. (30% of exam grade) During the in-class portion of the exam, you will also develop a “sociological problem to social problem” analysis utilizing readings done so far in the course.
Evaluation Criteria:
Analytic Essay section – Your response will be evaluated based on how fully and completely you answer the question; how well you utilize evidence from the readings to support your claims; and how logically your response is developed. A letter grade will be assigned to this section.
Concept Identification section – Your responses will be evaluated based on how completely you identify the required elements of each concept. Each response will be given a rank score of 0-4 (1 “point” for each section that’s full and complete, with partial credit given), and the rank scores will be totaled. A letter grade, based on the highest total rank score and a standard 90/80/70… scale will be assigned to this section.
Social problem… section – Your response will be evaluated based on how fully and completely you detail this analysis in each of the required steps. A letter grade will be assigned to this section.
The Topics: The exam will look almost exactly like what appears below. You should feel free to prepare all questions listed below for your notes; the questions on the exam will be drawn from those listed here.Section I – Analytic Essay. You will choose two (2) of the following and write a three (3) page essay in response to each topic. Be sure that you utilize at least three (3) readings in the development of your response to these questions, and that you show how it is you came to the claims you make in your response to these questions. These essays will be submitted prior to sitting for the exam; no exceptions will be made. Be sure that you provide the number of each essay question at the start of the essay, and that you have a cover page with your name on it; your name should appear nowhere else in the essays.
1. To what extent do you think we should learn from the ways in which other societies solve their social problems, and why?
2. To what extent does the way in which we conceive of individual responsibility hide our role in reproducing social problems, and why?
3. What kinds of criteria would you use to identify a solution to a social problem as being “more beneficial” and “more detrimental” to our society, and why?
4. To what extent does our particular ideological system make the development of solutions to problems with inequality and poverty more difficult, and why?
Section II – Concept Identification – Eight of these will appear on the exam; you choose five (5).
For each concept, be sure to identify a) the author who discussed it, b) the definition, c) the importance the concept has for the development of the author’s argument or for the study of social problems, and d) any concepts you think are related to that concept and how they’re related.
Homogenization
Thomas Theorem
Commodity consciousness
“Dominant model” of development
Nostalgia trap
Cross-cultural behavioral studies
Globalization
Imperialism and neoimperialism
Relative versus absolute poverty
Rationalization of labor
Tatemae
Welfare for the poor vs. welfare for the rich
Tools for socialization (han, hansei, etc.)
Job availability and welfare reform
Accessibility to “public goods”
Role concordance
Stigmatization
Public vs. private responsibilities
Surplus labor pool
IdeologySection III – Sociological Problem Analysis – Three of these will appear on the exam; you choose one (1).
Be sure that you fully and completely identify all the required elements in each of these analyses, showing the elements from each article that provide you with this insight (including page numbers).
1. Social problem to sociological problem: Cuban health care system
2. Sociological problem to social problem: Division of labor (using McDonalds article)
3. Social problem to sociological problem: “Nostalgia trap” and breakdown of the family
4. Sociological problem to social problem: Allocation of resources (using Garbarino article)
5. Social problem to sociological problem: Homogenization of culture (Barnet and Cavanaugh)
6. Sociological problem to social problem: Allocation of resources (using Parenti article)
7. Social problem to sociological problem to different social problem: Care for the elderly – start with Scandinavia, end with US
A few notes:
1. Obviously, there’s a lot of preparation to do for this exam. Don’t wait until the last second to do it. Start now, ask questions when you have them, and come see me if you need to.
2. Just like with every other exam, your success or failure here depends on what you do between now and the day of the exam more than it does on what happens that Friday.
3. Don’t short-cut or try to figure out how many of these you have to do. Prepare everything. That way, even if it’s not on the exam, you have more experience handling it, and are even more ready for the paper assignments and other work down the road in this course.